Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has stated that India is in a difficult position regarding its chances of reaching the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 final.
A series victory for Sri Lanka, India’s upcoming opponents, could elevate the hosts into the top four standings.
India is set to tour Sri Lanka for a two-match Test series scheduled to begin on August 15. Currently, India ranks fifth in the World Test Championship standings, with four wins and four losses from nine matches and a points percentage of 48.150. Sri Lanka stands sixth, with one win, one loss and two draws, holding a points percentage of 41.67.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra warned that India’s points percentage would decline further if they lose the series, while Sri Lanka could enter the finals race with a 2-0 series win. He said: “If we lose 2-0, we will remain at only 39 percentage points, and Sri Lanka will jump to 61 percentage points, and they will be No. 4. Sri Lanka will be in the run if they beat India 2-0. Then they have a realistic chance of going forward, or else it’s a so-near-yet-so-far story for them.”
Chopra added that a 2-0 series win for India would improve their points percentage to 57.58, but a drawn series would not offer any advancement. He stated: “If we win this series 2-0, we will reach 57.58 percentage points. If we do a clean sweep, we will gain a little. If we draw the series 1-1, we won’t gain anything because we will be at 48.48 and Sri Lanka will be at 44.44, and the positions will remain as is.”
Looking ahead to India’s future fixtures, Chopra noted the challenges posed by an away Test series in New Zealand in November and December and a five-match home series against Australia between January and March 2027. He commented: “Going forward, we have a two-match series in New Zealand, where it is difficult to win. Even if you lose one match, you lose 50 percentage points. It’s going to be a tough one, and after that, there are five matches against Australia in India. India is in a tough position.”
India’s task is especially challenging considering their historical difficulties in New Zealand, where they have not secured a Test series win since 2008/09 under MS Dhoni and only twice overall. At home, India may also find competing against Australia tough, having been whitewashed by New Zealand and South Africa in recent years, extending a poor record at home against SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) nations.
Last year’s loss to South Africa marked India’s first home defeat to the Proteas since 1999/00. That year, South Africa’s captain Temba Bavuma made history with an ICC World Test Championship title victory over Australia and a series win in India.
Additionally, India may face challenges playing in Sri Lanka due to spin bowling, an area that troubled them during recent home series losses to New Zealand and South Africa.